The Sapient Cosmos with James B. Glattfelder

New Thinking Allowed with Jeffrey Mishlove Jul 14, 2026 Dr. James B. Glattfelder is an author, academic, and quantitative researcher whose work bridges physics, complexity science, and the philosophy of consciousness. He holds a Master’s in theoretical physics and a PhD in the study of complex systems, both from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, ETH Zurich. As a doctoral researcher, he co-authored The Network of Global Corporate Control, a landmark study mapping the architecture of ownership across the global economy. He is the author of two major works integrating physics, philosophy, complexity science, and the study of consciousness: Information—Consciousness—Reality and his most recent book, The Sapient Cosmos: What a Modern Synthesis of Science and Philosophy Teaches Us About the Emergence of Information, Consciousness, and Meaning, which offers what he calls syncretic idealism — a wide-ranging integration of complexity science, analytic idealism, the perennial wisdom traditions, and the contemporary philosophy of consciousness. In this conversation, James explores the foundations of his inquiry — from his early encounter with quantum physics through the questions that eventually led him beyond the limits of physicalism, and into the metaphysical framework he calls syncretic idealism. He speaks to the hard problem of consciousness, the rise of contemporary idealism, the role of psychedelic experience, and the place of contemplative traditions within a rigorous scientific worldview. He considers symbolic cognition, synchronicity, the re-enchantment of the cosmos, and what it might mean to live in a participatory universe at a moment when humanity is, by many accounts, in a crisis of meaning. Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction 00:04:20 From quantum physics to the question of consciousness 00:10:03 Science, philosophy, and the metaphysical commitment 00:17:51 The hard problem of consciousness 00:34:09 Pure consciousness and its contents 00:45:18 The unconscious: ontological or epistemological? 00:52:45 Psychedelics, set, setting, and the return to trust 01:08:11 Re-Enchanting the universe 01:19:37 Cultural complexes and the choice of hope New Thinking Allowed Guest Host Leanne Whitney, PhD, is a depth psychologist and transformational coach based in Los Angeles, CA. She is the author of Consciousness in Jung and Patañjali and currently serves as Executive Director of Center for Transformation and Integration. Her website is https://leannewhitney.com/ To learn about Leanne Whitney’s upcoming Transformational Coaching Certification Course with an emphasis in Somatic Integration Therapy, please visit: https://transformationandintegration…. Producer: Ricky Derisz Editor: John Hartmann (Recorded on June 19, 2026)

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